A few years ago I felt successful, fit, plus I was in a great relationship, the world was
my oyster yet something was off…
I began having trouble sleeping at night, yet during the day
I had no problem falling asleep during my afternoon meetings. A friend says to me, “Sean, what is wrong with
you?”
“What do you mean?” I said.
“Your not the same high energy person you used to be.” he replied.
Later that week I Googled my symptoms;
Extreme Thirst
Low energy
Weight Loss
Frequent Urination
Blurred Vision
GOOGLE: Diabetes…
WHAT??
I went to the Doctor to confirm my greatest fear. "Yes, Type 1 Diabetes."
“Your body no longer produces insulin so you are going to have
to inject insulin once in the morning when you wake and before you go to bed
and each time you eat.” Dr. says.
“WHAT?? Inject…”
Sounds scary, I thought.
The Dr. replies, “Its
okay many people have Diabetes it is easily treated today. It doesn’t have to affect your life."
Honestly I was blown away… I thought "How could this happen to me? I am
a healthy person. What are others going
to think of me?"
I knew I could not get stuck a place of victim I had to
quickly move through this. I called my office and “I am taking a week off
to have my pity party and then I will be over it!”
Dale Carnegie says to assume the worst-case scenario and ask
yourself how you would deal with it. So
I began my research; Diabetes what I learned is that 1 in 4 Americans will have
diabetes in their lifetime. Besides
potential amputation of limbs and loss of eyesight it is the seventh highest
cause of death in America behind the #1 killer heart disease. And the most common cause of death for a
diabetic is… you guessed it…heart disease.
To avoid having these heath issues one must eat foods low in
carbohydrates, fat, and exercise. I told
myself as far as diseases go; "I got the
best one! The result is I will be healthier!" (1)
Even though, I didn’t want my life to change. I tried to keep things normal as
possible. Although, managing diabetes
was a continuous challenge. I was
following the traditional diabetic diet as prescribed. I still kept experiencing cycles between high
blood sugar then back to extreme lows. It
is like riding a roller coaster.
The most difficult part
about managing your blood glucose levels is that you have to anticipate (“guess”)
how the meal you are going to eat will affect your blood glucose level. You then have to take insulin to counter the
affects. The challenge is if you take
too much insulin or don’t eat enough carbohydrates your blood sugar crashes to
dangerously low levels and you can loose consciousness.
At one point I was so disoriented I got lost in a Wal-Mart. Fortunately my quick thinking children gave
me some juice to bring my blood sugar back to normal. It is terrifying not knowing where, or when,
anytime I could just space out.
Driving between giving two presentations, about gratitude,
in central California, to a group of REALTORS I felt the urge to call my father,
since he lived only an hour away from where I was presenting. I
didn’t grow up with my father; actually I didn’t even develop a relationship with
him until I was 21 years of age. Additionally, I hadn’t spoken to him for
nearly a year. Diabetes was common in our family. His sister (my aunt) died
of diabetes at the young age of 33. I visited him the following weekend we sat together for hours watching
documentaries and having deep discussions about the affects of nutrition on health.
After I left, I wondered to myself, “Why after a year would
he want to spend the entire week with me just watching videos on health.” I
realized right at that moment; it was his way of showing his love. (2)
After our weekend together I was empowered! I felt, if I created a healthy environment in
my body then my body would heal itself!
I began a fruit and vegetable juice diet. For the next several weeks I would only eat,
or rather drink, my way to a cure! (3)
After 16 weeks of drinking juices my blood glucose levels
were totally under control. In fact I
could last nearly three days without needing any insulin injections at
all! My Doctor couldn’t believe it. But… it wasn’t all a success. No longer eating any processed foods, meat,
cheese, starches, my mind began to lie to me.
Occasionally I would have binge cravings for salts and fats. The cravings got so bad my mind would tell me
“You can eat french fries they are just vegetables.”
Then I found myself secretly eating a large bag of five guys
french fries to the point of nausea. [As
you may know a large at five guys is a medium brown shopping bag of fries!] I
also secretly felt anger towards other people for being able to eat so
carelessly… wait not carelessly… absent-mindedly. Lastly, I was suffering from serious lack of
focus and energy. (4)
While presenting to a large group in Nebraska a woman came
to me and asked if I had ever heard of Dr. Shwarzbein. Schwarzbein is an endocrinologist that
studied the effects of nutrition on heath specifically with diabetics. Dr. Schwarzbein understood the challenges I
was having. (2) In fact she specialized with
exactly what I was trying to accomplish.
Managing my diabetes through nutrition and explaining why without fats
and oils in your diet your brain will suffer functionality. Healthy fats and oils enable the connections
between neurons to work effectively. (5)
Today with the guidance of a mentor with specialized
knowledge I am able to manage my diabetes with diet and only one injection of
insulin each day. By balancing my meals
with plant fibers, protein, and healthy fats.
This diet curbs my cravings, while maintaining low glucose levels, and
best of all my brain is sharp and focused!
We all go through challenges in life. Some are major, the loss of a loved one, disease,
and injury. Some are less dramatic yet
equally as painful. I share this story
with you to illustrate the beliefs one must have to overcome pain, obstacles,
that life is sure to send our way. These
five beliefs guide me through my ongoing challenge of managing my illness of
Diabetes.
5 Beliefs
1. Quickly,
move through the thoughts of being a victim; shift quickly into taking
responsibility.
2. Seek
guidance fast and often; with someone that has been there before.
3. Follow a
plan; even if it is not the right one.
4. Be prepared
to fail; failure is part of the process.
5. Make
corrections often; if the results are not desirable, adjust the plan.
Information on Dr.
Schwarzbein; www.schwarzbeinprinciple.com
Live Fully,
Sean
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